‘Reports claim…’ - Journalist shares big off-field news regarding ‘excellent’ Sunderland ace

Sunderland are set to offer goalkeeper Anthony Patterson a new contract following his impressive performances in the play-offs, as per Chronicle Live journalist Matty Hewitt.

The 22-year-old is approaching the final year of his Black Cats contract, having been promoted to the club’s first-team last summer.

The goalkeeper started the season on loan at National League side Notts County, where he kept three clean sheets in nine league appearances for the Magpies.

Upon returning to Wearside, the youngster took his chance after Christmas and made 22 league appearances for Sunderland, keeping a clean sheet in the recent League One play-off final win over Wycombe Wanderers.

According to journalist Alan Nixon (via Chronicle Live), Sunderland are set to offer Patterson a new contract.

Taking to Twitter, journalist Matty Hewitt shared a link to his corresponding article, stating: “Reports claim Anthony Patterson is in line for a new deal at #safc after his performances at the end of the campaign.”

This contract offer comes as Patterson is now the only goalkeeper left at Alex Neil’s disposal, with Lee Burge released and Ron-Thorben Hoffmann returning to Bayern Munich upon the expiry of his loan deal.

Patterson was handed the chance to impress against AFC Wimbledon in Neil’s first game in charge of the Wearside club, with both Hoffmann and Burge unavailable.

Impressively, the 22-year-old retained possession of the number one berth for the remainder of the season, with Neil hailing a number of his displays as ‘excellent’.

With such pressure on young shoulders in the play-off final, Patterson’s composed performance demonstrates why he deserves a long-term contract with the club, so hopefully the necessary paperwork will get sorted